I have been re-reading the books and a thought occured to me after finishing CoS. Does DD keep Mr.Filch around for any reason? DD keeps Snape, for the order and whatever work he is doing. He kept Trelawney in order to protect the prophcy and because she in fact has "seeing" abilities. (though rare!)

Mr. Filch, not only hates students and has never proven to the readers to have a softer side, but he is a squib to boot. What purpose does his presence at hogwarts serve? DD never really does anything whithout a reason, so I just wanted to know what you guys thoughts were. I am running into a brick wall with ideas, so I thought I would open it up for discussion.

Mods- I did a search on Mr. Filch and came up with 1.) SHIPS- for Mr. Filch and Mrs. Norris and 2.) General- Does Filch ever sleep?

I did not think these comments belonged in either of those so I started this topic. Please re-direct me if I have made a booboo.

This is an interesting question. I used to think that Dd kept Filch around because he has such a big heart and accepts those in the wizarding world that others fobb.
However, all the references to cats in the books, and the fact that Jk wont answer questions on why they are playing fairly noticable parts in the books so far leads me to believe they will become important later on. In reference to your query, I think Filches 'connection' to Mrs Norris will come into play.

Yeah, I noticed that too! He hasn't played that much of a role yet, other than telling us what a squib is, but I think he's definitely going to be important. I have two theories. I think that maybe he'll be the one to do magic late in life. Also, don't you think it's kind of odd to have a cat named Mrs. Norris? Hold on...I just realized, it's Mrs., not Ms. or Miss...that means that she's a married cat?! That makes no sense...I'm more confused than ever right now!

Hmm...I too have always thought that Dumbledore simply kept Filch around because he was a kind hearted man. Perhaps Dumbledore knew Filch? Maybe they are related somehow. I can imagine alot of Squibbs would like to have such a job...to make up for their lack of magic and still be in a magical community.

And Mrs. Norris is an interesting theory too. Cats are amazingly smart in these books. Crookshanks and Ms. Figg's cats come to mind. Perhaps there is something we don't know about the subject.

As for the name, that is not too uncommon. I know people that have cats named 'Mr. Tibbles' and such. 'Mrs. Norris' may not be literal. Who knows.

I think Filch is around because one of JKR's themes seems to be that we should learn to accept other people. Dumbledore's been a great example of that with others--Hagrid, Trelawney, Snape, and even telling the house elves that they can criticize him all they want. Filch is just another example of that.

The fact that he's a squib also is just to explain why he's so bitter and eager to catch students disobeying. This eagerness helps build tension and suspense in the books. I don't think there's much more to it than that.

Hmmmm. I vonder, and ponder, but cannot solve this mysterious mystery of mysterious mysteries. I think you may be on to something though, theres always a story behind the more, shall we say, interesting, people at Hogwarts. I think our eyes are being directed away from the more important character. Mrs. Norris. I think DD is keeping Mrs. Norris more than he is keeping Filch. I know this sounds dumb, but perhaps squibs can become animagus and Mrs. Figg is Mrs. Norris. So she can keep an eye on Harry. Can a squib do that though? And what are you guys talking about someone who can do magic late in life. I've never seen that quote... It sounds very interesting...

I've been wondering this myself, he showed very clearly in OotP that he didn't like Dumbldore that much and didn't aprove of how he was running the school. So why would Dumbledore have somone working for him that didn't aprove of how he's doing things if he could help it?

Mybe he will get kicked out of the school.. because he said that he didn't like the way he could punish the children..

but no..

I think that he will be important... maybe he is an animagus.. and married with his cat...

RJ

Filch is disturbed. Personally, his role is of no interest to me. His actions in OoTP disgusted me. He was breathless with excitement over the possibility of whipping, chaining up, and torturing students. He's a digusting human being. THEN, he betrays DD by siding with that evil wench Umbridge. I'm sorry, Mr. Filch can rot for all I care. Rowling sometimes scares/shocks me with how evil she can make a character. Filch is one that I consider pure evil. WHy DD keeps him around is beyond me.

On a side note, I was rereading book 2 and caught something I thought was a little odd. Maybe you guys can help me out with this. Harry came back from Quiddich practive, covered in mud. Filch caught him and brought him to his office but had to leave quickly because Nearly Headless Nick convinced Peeves to knock something over. Anyway, before he left the office, Harry said ït was just a bit of mud" to which Filch replied, " that's an extra hour of scrubbing" My question is, what are the house elfs for if not to scrub the floors? Why is FIlch doing them. Which is ANOTHER reason why I wonder why Filch een exists. WHat you guys think?

I happen to be quite fond of Mrs. Norris, though perhaps that's only because of her name. I wasn't aware cats could get married. Perhaps Mrs. Norris has been married to Crookshanks all this time.

In all seriousness, though, let's look at the example of Mrs. Figg. She is a Squib (or so she has told us), and she is very close to her cats. She has proven useful to the Order by keeping an eye on Harry, reporting to Dumbledore ... perhaps her fireplace is connected to the Floo Network? Mr. Filch is also a Squib, and he is close to his beloved Mrs. Norris. Is there a possible connection between Squibs and cats there?

I think the squib-cat connection is just a coincidence that JKR put in without realizing she had done it.

Also, no way is Mrs. Norris half kneazle. She may be half something, but she and Filch are kindred spirits, and Filch is not about knowing the difference between good and evil.

I never really thought about Filch that much. Just that he was an old man who needed a job to take care of himself. But, didn't he in the first book, say that students, for punishments, were hung by their fingers on chains, or something like that? And, that it's not like it was back then. That means that Filch has been working for Dumbledore for quite some time. I think that the students had that punishment around the early 1900s..so would that make Filch about, what, 90 years old..? Heh, don't know where I'm getting at either.

Well, cats are one of the smartest creatures, and so...they could help squibs with whatever.. Don't think there's a connection though. Oh, and why is it a chore to punish him? Isn't Filch just there to punish students..?

Yeah...I can see where you can put the Squib/cat connection with the 2 squibs we have been introduced to. I think it is possibly 2 different things here:

We could go so far as to say that squibs have a "special" relationship with cats. Maybe that is a given. Or perhaps a detail put in for clever readers.

Secondly I think Filch will be around for a more pressing matter. Perhaps he is destined to aid the Order in ways not yet known to any but DD. Perhaps he has a debt to pay? That makes him stay at the school, though not happy about it, and wait until the time he can repay his debt to...well...this is where my train of thought stops.